A lot of money to appease police detective
To the editor:
In response to the Thursday story about the Orthodox Jewish police detective who settled his lawsuit with Metro:
I find it interesting that Steve Riback's newfound faith -- which he adopted about five years ago, well after he became employed as a police officer -- caused him such an inconvenience that he needed to sue his department. I also find it disturbing that it will take a $350,000 settlement to appease Mr. Riback.
As police officers, we commit to a lifetime of public service, knowing and expecting that there will be little or no recognition for a job done well. We go to work each day fighting for what is right and just, but also knowing that we are held to a higher standard. We voluntarily chose this career path and the paramilitary style of the organization that limits the individuality we are allowed to display while on duty. Mr. Riback knew this when he competed for the job and lived with those rules for almost half of his career.
If Mr. Riback's religious faith is now so consuming that he cannot comply with the department's 24/7 work schedule or the uniform appearance policy, maybe he should find another job.
Not all police officers are self-centered individuals trying to better their own lot in life. The majority of us have chosen to serve in this brotherhood with honor, pride and dedication and to hold the line between good and evil. I can only hope that Mr. Riback donates his proceeds of the lawsuit to the Injured Police Officer's Fund, where it will be used to assist those officers who sustain an actual, rather than perceived, injury in the line of duty.
Dane Mattoon
HENDERSON
THE WRITER IS HENDERSON POLICE OFFICER.
More bailouts
To the editor:
My wife and I bought a home here three years ago. We made a down payment of 45 percent and now find our house, like many of yours, is worth less than we owe on it. Taxpayers -- you notice I didn't say the government, because it has no money -- have been put on the hook to bail out people who couldn't afford their mortgages in the first place, the banks, the automakers, insurance companies, etc. Now we are told we have to bail out states such as California, whose spending has increased 40 percent in the past five years.
I don't know about you, but I've had enough. Bailouts won't end until we contact our representatives in Congress and say: Stop, enough is enough.
Robert Gardner
HENDERSON
Whining students
To the editor:
I can't believe the crying and whining from our pointy-headed academics over the state's need to trim our budget in order to reflect current revenue. All families know they need to make these necessary adjustments when required. Yet the university regents even go so far as to use students as mouthpieces to try to intimidate the taxpayers to feel sorry for the fact that our students may have to work their way through college.
Most of these kids have never had to face the realities of life, so when sufficiently brainwashed by their professors to go forth and protest the budget cuts, they think it will magically pry loose funds that must exist somewhere.
What don't they understand about the fact that the money just isn't there? I, for one, hope that our governor will stick to his plan. Massive layoffs would possibly get their attention.
R.A. Salter
HENDERSON
Student passion
To the editor:
As one who attended the UNLV protest last Thursday, I was delighted to see such passion and activism over the governor's proposed budget cuts amongst my students. It demonstrated to me that UNLV is not only a repository of knowledge and expertise to train the future generations of educated citizens in our community, but is also a source of tremendous pride and hope for the future of our city and state.
There is no way that a university of UNLV's stature can survive a 50 percent budget cut and maintain its status as a top-performing, research-class university. Now, more than ever, we need to support higher education in our state to aid in transforming and diversifying our economy to weather this economic crisis.
Michael Pravica
HENDERSON
THE WRITER IS AN ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF PHYSICS AT UNLV.
Funny story
To the editor:
The Associated Press coverage of Hamas' declaration of "victory" over Israel (Jan. 21) may be the funniest material I read all week. AP "reporters" Karin Laub and Ibrahim Barzak actually claimed that of the 1,300 Gazans supposedly killed in the fighting, the majority were civilians, and that thousands of homes were destroyed.
Think about those numbers. I've followed the fighting from the outset, yet this is the first account I've read that made such claims. At least they buried an acknowledgment of Hamas' true intent at the end of their script: the "liberation of all of Palestine."
When will Review-Journal editors start reporting on the Arab-Israeli conflict using balanced services, instead of The AP's comedy writers?
Randall Bassin
HENDERSON
